Ex-Jet Joshua Bellamy Sentenced To Prison For PPP Loan Fraud
ST. PETERSBURG, FL — Joshua J. Bellamy, a former National Football League (NFL) player, received a three-year prison sentence Friday in court, the U.S. State Attorney's Office said in a press release.
Bellamy, 32, of St. Petersburg pleaded guilty June 9 in the Southern District of Florida to conspiracy to commit wire fraud. He got a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan worth $1,246,565 for his company, Drip Entertainment LLC, using falsified documents and false information, court documents reported. He confessed to using the PPP money on personal items—jewelry and a stay at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino. He also sought PPP loans on behalf of his family members and close associates. Bellamy told investigators he paid more than $311,000 to an alleged co-conspirator, James Stote, as a kickback for his help preparing and submitting the fraudulent loan application. Bellamy has also been ordered by the court to serve three years of supervised released and pay $1,246,565 in restitution and $1,246,565 in forfeiture.
According to the State Attorney, he will serve a total of 37 months in federal prison.
Stote has been charged by complain on June 24, 2020 with wire fraud, bank fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud. His case remains pending. He is also accused of receiving more than $28,000 as a kickback for his assistance in preparing and submitting a fraudulent loan application for a 38-year-old Miramar woman, Yashica Bain, who received a sentence of two years in federal prison for fraudulently obtaining a PPP loan as part of this criminal scheme, according to court documents. Bain received her sentence Thursday. Authorities said she collected $415,232 in a PPP loan for her company, Microblading Brow Studio LLC. She paid the proceeds to herself and others who never worked for her company, court documents said.
Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.
This article originally appeared on the St. Pete Patch